Christmas Card Holder – A Lowes Creative Idea #LowesCreator

November 25, 2012

I hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving weekend and stuffed your tummies full of turkey and mashed potatoes (with butter of course) – my personal favorite. We traveled and enjoyed the Holiday very much, but the only bummer about not hosting was the lack of leftovers. Anyway, let’s get on to something fun…

I’m super excited for today because I have so much to share with you! I’ve been busy preparing for the Christmas season (yes, already – I know for some it’s early), but wanted to let Thanksgiving pass before bombarding you with all my Christmas inspiration. Now that the Holiday season countdown has begun, brace yourself for a fun few weeks ahead with DIY creations and decorating ideas and tips!

Now that Thanksgiving is over, the first Christmas cards started trickling in over the weekend and since my December Lowe’s Challenge was to create something for the upcoming Holiday season, a new Christmas Card Holder seemed so apropos.

This card holder is one of my favorite projects I’ve ever made. I got the idea when creating the family pallet photo holder a few weeks ago. At the time, I mentioned how I felt the photo holder was so versatile and didn’t have to just hold family photos, but also christmas cards during the holidays, as well as invitations, announcements, etc anytime of year. Thus my Christmas Card Holder was created…

I started off my hitting the lumber and paint aisles of my local Lowe’s and picked up a few must-have items:

6′ long X 12″ wide wood board

clothes pins (30 – 35)

spray paint (I chose Valspar Glossy Cut Ruby)

stencil (purchased at AC Moore / a silhouette would work too)

white paint & stain (for the distressing)

paint for the letter (I chose metallic gold)

I began by…

1.Distressing the Wood

I was going for a worn look and wanted the wood to look old and distressed, so I banged-it-up a bit and layered it with a combo of paint and stain.

I began by using nails, chain, and a hammer to bang up the surface to make it “used and abused”. This is a great way to get out some of that pent-up aggression – hehe.

Once I achieved the desired “wear”, I added one coat of white paint. I used a semi-gloss finish paint that I had laying around, but any kind will do. Once dry, I sanded the wood thoroughly so some areas of the raw wood showed through and the surface was smooth. I added a light coat of stain focusing more on the edges and ends. I applied it in small sections and quickly wiped it away so only a thin layered remained. Then I added another coat of white paint and sanded the surface once more. This layering process resulted in just the right amount of wear.

Old to New in 30 minutes!

2. Stencil

I found a pretty stencil at AC Moore which I got for about $3+ (using a 50% off coupon). The letters are 3″ high and the words CHRISTMAS BLESSINGS fit just right on the 6′ board.

3.Paint

Once I outlined the stenciled letters with a pencil, I filled them in with a nice metallic gold craft paint. At first, I was going to use red or green for the letters, but I am so glad I chose gold – I’m loving the hue, especially with the other goldtones in my other holiday decor.

4. Adding the Clothespins

While the letters were drying, I spray painted the clothes pins with Valspar Glossy Cut Ruby. Once they were ready, I attached them to the wood board with hot glue. The spacing between each clothespin is about 5-6″ and there are 16 on each side.

And it’s done…

I’ll admit, the Christmas cards are from last year – I haven’t received that many yet. I always keep my cards and then use them the next year as tags for presents, so that’s what these will be used for in a few short weeks.

My new card holder is such a unique and fun addition to our Christmas decor. I have it situated right next to the Christmas tree so we can enjoy the treasures that are sent from family and friends – true Christmas Blessings!

And I created another card holder last year if you want to see that as well. I love this one too, but with all the cards we receive, it ended up not being large enough. This new one though, has lots of room! Click to see: Holiday Card Holder.

I’m still working on putting the finishing touches on the rest of the house, and hope to share a Christmas Tour next week. In the meantime, I’ll be showing you a few more DIY projects, as well as some easy and fun decorating ideas.

Have you decorated for the Holidays yet? How to you display your Christmas cards?

Disclosure: I am part of the Lowe’s Creative Team and was provided with a Lowe’s gift card to purchase items for my project. I was also compensated for my time to use the products. No one told me what to create, what to buy, how to use the product, or what to write. All opinions are 100% mine!

Comments

This is really awesome Jenna! I’m inspired as always. Seems like an inexpensive (and fun) weekend project! Especially that distressing the wood part. I could use some time alone with a hammer and a board! lol!!

[…] I got my first Christmas card in the mail yesterday! The horror! I haven’t even got my list started or taken family pictures. I am officially inspired to get the ball rolling and to find a place to put all the incoming ones! Where you might ask? A DIY Christmas Card Holder. This amazing DIY will look great anywhere in the house and you can pick whatever colors you want! You need a board, clothes pins, spray paint, stencils, white pain & stain, and paint for the letter. Everything you need to know for how to make this, you can find at sasinteriors […]